An album on the poet of politics
My first impression of Bangabandhu dates back to around the mid-sixties. A helicopter service had been in operation between Dhaka
5y ago
An avoidable mayhem
Last Tuesday, from the northerly Himalayas, a blustery wind cascaded down to Haripur area of Thakurgaon leaving a patch of ruins in
5y ago
Uprooting corruption: We can do better
The seasonal discussion on corruption is back in full swing following the release of Berlin-based Transparency International's global Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), 2018.
5y ago
Which way is pluralistic democracy headed?
We have known democratic pluralism, pluralistic democracy and multi-party system to be synonymous terminologies. But is it as simplistic as that? Conceptually and ideally, it is; but in practice and real-world situations, it may not be so!
5y ago
Change of style or substance?
With at least 27 new faces and only a few septuagenarians around, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was greeted on her re-election to a record fourth term at Gono Bhaban on Tuesday.
5y ago
Sheikh Hasina's fourth term
It is the huge gaps in the numbers of votes polled by the winners and the losers in the 11th national election that apparently unveiled a “controlled and patterned” nature of the process of polls.
5y ago
Wintry mist from a non-level playing field!
If almost every past election in Bangladesh had been a test case for democracy, the one the nation is going to in two days' time is a veritable litmus test for the country's democratic future.
5y ago
Nomination cauldron bubbling away, electioneering heat awaited
It was for the BNP leaders “a strategy” of filing multiple sets of nomination papers to cover the contingency of rejections. This came in the way of 141 party nominees out of 696 who had applied to the EC for a go-ahead.
5y ago
May 18, 2018
Stampede deaths: Martyrs of mismanagement
We are not even five days into the pall of gloom cast by the alms-giving incident at Satkania, Chittagong causing nine deaths, mostly
May 11, 2018
What is Trump up to?
The US President Donald Trump in a dramatic move has withdrawn from the Iran nuclear deal ahead of the deadline set for May 12. True to his hell-bent attitude to abandon the deal spearheaded by his predecessor Obama, he has given another proof of an impulsive action distancing himself from a multilateral approach to romp on to an isolationist trajectory.
May 4, 2018
IPL through Bangladesh's lens
We are skating on thin ice as far as our participation in the IPL goes. That is the way we feel—both in terms of representation on the circuit and inclusion in the playing 11 on given days. Speaking of representation, only Shakib and Mustafizur Rahman were chosen from Bangladesh to play in the 11th edition of the glamorous and cash-awash Indian Premier League (IPL) out of six originally making it to the auction list. Four players from Afghanistan were picked from 10 having been put on auction. One has been taken ill leaving three Afghans playing now.
April 27, 2018
Rohingya Windrush?
All hell broke loose over the British government! It found itself in the eye of a storm following a self- inflicted controversy raging over what is called the “Windrush generation”. “Windrush” is the name of a ship that had brought thousands of Caribbean people to Great Britain in 1948 to help rebuild the war-ravaged country.
April 20, 2018
Can Rajib's death be a tipping point?
JUST how anarchic the transport sector has become is graphically illustrated by the following instances: In the first place, after having severed Rajib's hand, the beastly bus broke the spine of a housewife near New Market; and grievously wounded a girl's leg as if on a serial damaging spree. Secondly, last Tuesday morning, a collision between a bus and a lorry on Dhaka-Khulna highway, severed a transport worker's hand from his body!
April 6, 2018
Our dying rivers and hopes for water justice
This is ironic and self-contradictory on the face of it. On the one hand, you read in the paper an eight-part series on mostly dead or moribund rivers all over the country—700 in total, of which 54 are trans-boundary rivers. On the other, you get to hear of Bangladeshi experts preparing to impart their knowledge of rivers to the Bihar state government!
March 30, 2018
Does the squeaky wheel get the oil?
As BNP's leadership keeps moving the higher courts to get bail for Khaleda Zia, an accused in the Zia Orphanage case, and trundles along the corridors of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) for permission to hold a public rally, the ruling party keeps a stoic distance.
March 23, 2018
Bangladeshi brand of cricket and World Cup 2019
The noise and hype of the Nidahas Trophy tri-series have now settled into a civilised hum.
March 16, 2018
Tigers go down fighting in the end
After the India-Bangladesh T-20 match in the Nidahas Trophy, 2018 tri-series on Wednesday, I felt that the Tigers had deprived themselves of a back-to-back victory. Closely on the heels of last Saturday's epic win against Sri Lanka chasing down a target of 215 runs, the fourth highest in the history of international T-20 cricket, Bangladesh fancied its chances to defeat India.
March 9, 2018
Aftermath of a ghastly attack
The attack on Zafar Iqbal has been profoundly appalling but not surprising. He has been stalked for a few years since being put on the hit list by elements fed on a dogmatic diet to finish those off who didn't fit into their narrow view of life.
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